Donald Trump Makes Another Cabinet Addition. How Will it Impact Small Business?

Trump's appointee for the Department of Labor has already voiced his stance on steep minimum wage increases and restrictive labor regulations.

The nominations keep on coming.

President-elect Donald Trump has nominated Andrew Puzder to head the Department of Labor, according to Bloomberg BNA. Puzder has been highly critical of steep minimum wage increases and restrictive labor regulations, including the DOL’s overtime rule.

“Andy Puzder has created and boosted the careers of thousands of Americans, and his extensive record fighting for workers makes him the ideal candidate to lead the Department of Labor,” President-elect Trump said in a statement. “Andy will fight to make American workers safer and more prosperous by enforcing fair occupational safety standards and ensuring workers receive the benefits they deserve, and he will save small businesses from the crushing burdens of unnecessary regulations that are stunting job growth and suppressing wages.”

The nomination has received praise from pro-small business advocates, including NFIB.

“Many NFIB members are franchisees, a business model that was under attack during the Obama administration,” said NFIB President and CEO Juanita Duggan. “Andy Puzder understands how these actions and other labor regulations directly harm American entrepreneurs and family businesses.”

Duggan added that “small business owners are pleased that someone who knows what it takes to manage a successful company has been nominated to oversee the Department of Labor.”

Earlier this year, Puzder told Fox Business that he was “opposed to raising [the minimum wage] to the point where lower-skilled workers, working-class Americans, young people, minorities, are losing the jobs they need to get on the ladder of success.”